The indignados meme, remixed. Anarchist flyer, Porta Palazzo. Torino, November 25th.

The horizon is revolutionary. Kunstmuseum Stuttgart, July 2010.

For nearly a decade, Courtney Utt has designed my book and CD jackets, and has worked for me as a freelancer everywhere from Asphodel to Tikkun. When I was helping launch PM Press, I brought Court aboard to help design their initial titles, as well as assist with branding.

One of the most memorable jacket designs Courtney supervised was for Staughnton Lynd and Andrej Grubacic‘s wildly popular Wobblies and Zapatistas. Imagine our surprise when, showing Court around Berlin, we found these flyers, using the book’s cover, advertising a Die Linke event.

It’s a real tribute to Courtney’s art direction that, half a world away, the San Francisco-based designer would discover an event hosted by Germany’s most significant progressive political party, relying upon her work. Here’s to seeing more appropriations like this in the future.

During the time I took off to finish the research for Israel vs Utopia – January 2007 to January 2008 – I only assumed one freelance assignment. Normally spread too thin, I had to keep my non-IvU activities to a bare minimum. The gig? Editing a book about the anarchist ideological heritage of Israel’s kibbutz movement.

Originally a favor to the publisher, who explained that even though he had picked the title up, he couldn’t direct such an Israel-specific project, I was delighted to give him a helping hand. Not only would it be good for the book’s author to have an editor with my specific set of interests. I knew I’d learn something too.

Lo and behold, much to mine and the author’s surprise (James Horrox and I exchanged emails last week trying to confirm its publication status), A Living Revolution was released by AK Press on July 14. Turned in this time last year, according to James, the book had some final additions made to it, and received a formal copy edit.

James Horrox has much to be proud of. A combination of intellectual history, social theory and investigative journalism, A Living Revolution is being published precisely at a time when immense efforts are being made to demonstrate that Israel has always been an inherently rightist project. Not so, according to Horrox.

To get a teaser, check out the marvellous piece James wrote for Zeek in October 2007, Rebuilding Israel’s Utopia. It is based on the book’s research. Sweetening the deal is an absolutely terrific forward by Uri Gordon, a lecturer at the Arava Institute, and the author of the extremely well-regarded Anarchy Alive.

More publishing news forthcoming.

With everyone talking about a return to Keynesianism and a revival of the welfare state, it was a relief to see a poster name dropping the A-word, however ironically. Dorkbot meeting, east London, 11/12.